Strictly Come Dancing‘s Brendan Cole has proven to be one of the most popular dancers of the BBC show, staying the course on the programme for the entire 13 years it’s been on our TV screens.

And while he’s made lots of people happy with his impressive moves, the professional dancer is also never one to shy away from voicing his opinions – no matter what they might be.

Just recently, the 41-year-old clashed with new Head Judge Shirley Ballas, while defending his partner this series, Charlotte Hawkins.

However, he defended his comments, saying that he felt he was right in sticking up for Charlotte in front of the judging panel.

“I had to stick up for Charlotte and the stuff she was getting from the judges, and in particular, Shirley.

“I’d do it again. I don’t hold back, if I believe something, I say it.”

However, Brendan has recently admitted that he has mellowed slightly since his former years on Strictly, confessing that he realised he needed to tone down his comments a little.

Reflecting on his previous behaviour, Brendan told Fabulous magazine, “I’ve regretted a few things I said in the early days, but I was a bit more “peacock” then, trying to make my mark on the show.

“Nowadays, I tend not to make stupid comments where it’s going to come back and bite me.”

And when questioned on whether he was referring to a specific incident, Brendan admitted, “I wouldn’t want to bring it up, but I said a couple of horrible things back in the day, and I went too far.”

In the past, Brendan has famously had a few clashes with the Strictly judges when he disagreed with their criticism – in particular, Craig Revel Horwood.

And it’s been well publicised that he hasn’t always gotten along with his celebrity partner on the show.

When asked which of his past partner’s he’d like to ignore, have dinner with, and go on holiday with, Brendan admitted, “I’d ignore half of them.” Brendan famously had run-ins with stars including Lulu and Claire Kingon the show.

(Brendan and Victoria Pendleton in 2010’s Strictly Come Dancing)

However, he did also say that he’d “go for dinner with a quarter of them and go on holiday with a quarter of them”.

He continued, “Charlotte would go at the top – she’s one of my favourite partners. Likewise with Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Lisa Snowdon, Kelly Brook, Victoria Pendleton and Kirsty Gallacher.”